BB_RADABA: a computer program as a tool for breeding and management of laboratory animals.

The use of well characterized laboratory animals in biomedical research is of importance for quality securing and reproducibility of animal experiments. Therefore, breeders should not only have in mind the reproduction of their animal stocks, but they should also be interested to achieve an optimal resemblance of the animals in the main traits characterizing them as a model of human diseases. Specific software applications which helps the breeders in monitoring the main breeding parameters, selecting suitable breeding pairs and data processing are practically not available. This prompted us to develop a computer program for management of breeding and experimental data, which we called BB_RADABA. In this report we want to give a short survey on this computer program.     

Saturation intensity and time response of InGaAs-InGaP MQW opticalmodulators

We report modulation saturation and time response measurements on InGaAs-InGaP MQW modulators. The measurements yield a saturation intensity of (3.7±0.1) kW/cm² for a 0-10 V swing and switching times between 10 and 90 ns, depending on the bias voltage and incident light intensity. The observed dependence indicates that field screening due to carrier build-up is the dominant physical mechanism determining both the speed and the saturation intensity. This conclusion is supported by results of theoretical calculations     

On Iron Metabolism and Its Regulation

Iron is a critical metal for several vital biological processes. Most of the body’s iron is bound to hemoglobin in erythrocytes. Iron from senescent red blood cells is recycled by macrophages in the spleen, liver and bone marrow. Dietary iron is taken up by the divalent metal transporter 1 (DMT1) in enterocytes and transported to portal blood via ferroportin (FPN), where it is bound to transferrin and taken up by hepatocytes, macrophages and bone marrow cells via transferrin receptor 1 (TfR1). While most of the physiologically active iron is bound hemoglobin, the major storage of most iron occurs in the liver in a ferritin-bound fashion. In response to an increased iron load, hepatocytes secrete the peptide hormone hepcidin, which binds to and induces internalization and degradation of the iron transporter FPN, thus controlling the amount of iron released from the cells into the blood. This review summarizes the key mechanisms and players involved in cellular and systemic iron regulation.     

Some Experiences of Using Different Analytical Methods in Screening for Oil and Protein Content in Rapeseed

In this study some analytical methods, which have been used in oil crop breeding, are compared from the point of view of plant breeding. For oil content determination a gravimetric method, NMR and NIR have been used. Protein content has been determined by the classical Kjeldahl technique, by the Biuret method and by NIR. The results indicate that the NIR spectroscopy is specially useful in screening breeding materials. This method enables the breeder to select for several quality characters simultaneously at a high speed and at a low cost. Since NIR spectroscopy is nondestructive, the same seed lot can be used for analysis and planting. Thus it is possible to select on a large scale for single plants.     

Efficient material design for diesel particulate filters

This paper will give an overview about the filter development for diesel particulate emission control in automotive applications. The material development for passenger car diesel particulate filters led to new materials like silicon carbide while for heavy duty applications still Cordierite plays a major role. But in the future other materials might also be used for passenger cars. This paper will show the basic difference between both applications and describe the material design in terms of filter properties (base material, back pressure aspects, filtration efficiency, coating impact). Current application on vehicles with catalysed soot filters (CSF) with and without oxidation catalyst will be presented. Furthermore an outlook will be given on materials for catalysed soot filters for the future.     

LIGA micro-openings for coherence characterization of X-rays

Infinitely thin opaque screens serving for diaphragms as defined in the visible-light optics are not feasible for operation with X-ray beams due to their high penetrability. Micro-openings of predicted sidewall shape in a gold layer up to 140 μm thick which would provide low transparency, are proposed. The proposed micro-openings were made using the LIGA technique and tested successfully at photon energies of up to 25 keV. The micro-openings can be used as targets for coherence X-ray pattern or, if long interference tails are avoided by means of the advanced sidewall shape, as X-ray beam collimators.     

High-pressure fluidized bed coating utilizing supercritical carbon dioxide

Various particles with sizes between 100 and 200 μm were encapsulated with waxes commonly used in technical coating applications. For this, a homogeneous mixture of molten paraffin and supercritical carbon dioxide was prepared in an autoclave and injected into the high-pressure fluidized bed through a nozzle from the bottom. Due to the different conditions in the mixing autoclave and the fluidized bed, the paraffin precipitated in the vicinity of the nozzle and adhered to the solid particles. A complete, thin, uniform, and solvent-free coating was produced. The use of two paraffins with different alkane compositions resulted in dissimilar spreads on glass beads due to their different glass transition temperatures. A smaller pressure drop across the nozzle led to more uniform and even coatings. Glass beads, ceramic spheres, potassium chloride, and lactose showed similar coating results, whereas different morphologies were observed with a plastic material, characterized by a rougher surface and a lower surface energy. The high quality of the coating was confirmed by standard dissolution tests with coated potassium chloride crystals and lactose agglomerates.